Moguls and Iron Men First Transcontinental Railroad by James McCague Dust Jacket
Moguls and Iron Men First Transcontinental Railroad by James McCague
Hard Cover with Dust Jacket
Copyright 1964 FIRST EDITION
392 pages indexed
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Part One
The Dreamers; the Doers; the Congress; and Mr. Lincoln
1. Washington, 18603
2. Mr. Judah's Railroad12
3. "We Have Drawn the Elephant"26
4. The Nature of the Beast34
5. Four Strong Men43
6. Chicago, '6262
7. A Ground-Breaking on the Missouri68
8. Troubles and a Turning Point76
Part Two
The Snow-Capped Mountains and the Lone Prairie
9. The Money Men89
10. The Climbing Miles101
11. Highball on the Plains111
12. General Dodge's Army117
13. Meridian 100127
14. The Wheels Roll West137
15. Cape Horn Passage143
16. Time of Trial156
17. War Paths and Survey Stakes164
18. "Thunder All Along the Sky"180
19. Sierra Summit196
20. Cheyenne205
Part Three
The Racing Iron; a Scrambling of Titans
21. Mostly Brigham Young211
22. The Truckee to the Humboldt219
23. Roaring Times and Iron Men236
24. Strive East; Strive West255
25. A Tempest at Interior264
26. Wasatch Odyssey268
27. Mr. Huntington in Washington278
28. Year of Climax289
29. Big Day at Victory304
Part Four
The Golden Spike; and Afterward
30. Great Expectations315
31. "Done"324
32. The Road to India333
Epilogue
Recriminations; Scandal; the Public Betrayed?
33. Spectacle on the Potomac351
34. And in Conclusion 364
NOTES367
BIBLIOGRAPHY379
INDEX383
MAPS
1. Central Pacific Survey, 1863
2. Union Pacific Railroad, 1866
3. Union Pacific, January 1867
4. Central Pacific Drives for the Summit, 1866
S. "A mile a day in '68"; Central Pacific Route Across Northern Nevada, 1868
6. Union Pacific Construction Across Wyoming, 1868
7. Battleground in Utah, 1869
There are sixteen pages of illustrations following page 148.
The construction of the first transcontinental railroad was a tremendous financial gamble and engineering marvel. an undertaking on the scale of the building of the Suez and Panama Canals. This enthralling book tells the full story of the project from the earliest efforts of the brilliant engineer, Theodore Judah, to win private and government support for his dream, to the investigation of the Credit Mobilier after the track was laid in 1869, more than ten years later.
It describes how, after a Pacific Railroad bill was finally approved in 1862, the two rival companies, the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific, drove toward each other, battling terrain. weather, Indians, financial crises, and corruption. It brings alive the money men behind the scenes-Thomas Durant, Collis Huntington, Oakes Ames, Leland Stanford-who fought to keep their empires from tottering; and it follows the fortunes at each railhead, where Chinese coolies and an army of Irishmen performed miracles of construction under the tireless leadership of Charles Crocker, Samuel Montague, Grenville Dodge, and the Casement brothers. Ahead of the trackmen, surveyors braved the elements and lost their lives in Indian raids, while behind them, in a frantic effort to keep up with the rapid progress, lawless railhead towns sprang up overnight, and soon were left behind.
Here are fascinating accounts of how the Central conquered the deep snows and steep grades of the Sierra Nevadas: of Thomas Durant's successful kidnaping by irate unpaid workers; of the famous golden spike ceremony as seen by participants; and of the lavish excursions organized by the railroads to impress such famous journalists as Henry Stanley and George Francis Train.
Moguls and Iron Men brings a fabulous era to life. It is high drama from the first survey to the driving of the last spike, a story of courage, ingenuity and determination in the face of an enormous challenge, a tale of giants and not a few rascals who dared to make an American dream come true.
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